“Shifter kids?” Cassie asks, and the room seems to fill with a palpable, icy silence. She looks between the two of us, still munching her toast.
“I know,” she says simply, and Rhys and I look at each other in panic.
What does she know? Does she know Rhys is her dad?
“What do you know?” Rhys asks, echoing my thoughts.
“About werewolves,” she says matter-of-factly. “Auntie Jean had to tell me because Martin shifted right in front of me.”
Of course that was going to happen. I’m so stupid for not having realized it.
“Oh,” Rhys says. “I’m really sorry we didn’t tell you ourselves.”
“It’s okay,” Cassie shrugs. “Auntie Jean explained that because we came from the outside world, everyone wanted to be careful to explain things to me, so I wasn’t scared.”
“That was nice of Auntie Jean,” I say, breathing a sigh of relief. “I’ll have to thank her for taking such good care of you.”
“She really does!” Cassie smiles enthusiastically. “She’s much more fun than my other babysitter, and I can play with other kids—you’re right, Rhys, we need a special person. Bigger kids go to school in town, don’t they?”
“Usually, yes,” Rhys says. “It’s important to learn how to get along there as adults, but shifter kids definitely need a special start to life. And sometimes, our kids just can’t fit in at all, no matter what we do.”
“Yeah, Auntie Jean said that,” Cassie says, finishing her toast. “I hope I can go to school. We won’t know until I shift.”
I look up at Rhys suddenly, and he lifts his shoulders in a little shrug. Fear churns in my belly. I don’t know what’s going to happen to my baby girl—or to me.
I don’t want to stay here forever, but it looks like Cassie needs her own kind. I’m turning into a freak that doesn’t fit in here, or out there… or maybe anywhere.
A sharp beep outside jolts me back to reality, and I wipe Cassie’s face and hands clean before taking her outside.
“Hi, Jean,” I say as I walk up the path to meet her at the curb. “Will you bring the kids to the party tonight?”
“Yep,” Jean replies, smiling. “That’s no trouble. We’ll be up at the manor by about four, so you can take your time getting ready. I’ll have the kids nice and entertained.”
“Thank you,” I say, meaning it. “For taking such good care of her.”
“It really is my pleasure,” Jean says, closing the sliding door of the van after Cassie gets in and starts chatting with the other kids. Jean takes a couple of steps away, then checks to make sure the kids are occupied before taking my arm.
“It’s probably nothing,” she says. “But Cassie really doesn’t show any signs of shifting. She definitely has an energy about her, like something building, but I’m not seeing the same signs I’d usually see.”
“Oh,” I say. “Is any of that really bad?”
“It’s just unusual,” Jean says, shrugging. “If I weren’t feeling any energy from her, I wouldn’t expect her to shift for a long while yet. It’s very individual what age it happens. It’s just that her aura is revving up, but nothing is really going on physically.”
“Okay,” I reply. “I suppose I’ll tell Rhys? This is really out of my area.”
“For sure. I’ll see you tonight, anyway.”
“Yes! Will Rachel and Carly be there?”
“Yep,” Jean answers. “I might even get a chance to come back and party myself, depending on how the kids settle, and if any of the grandmas want to sit in with them.”
“That would be nice,” I say, giving her a brief hug. “See you later!”
As I walk back to the house, I thank God that my relationship with Jean and other members of the pack has changed so much. I actually feel welcome and supported. In fact, I haven’t heard a single bad word or felt nasty vibes for a couple of weeks.
I know it’s Rhys’s doing. He told them to be nicer to me. It seems to have opened people up to me, though. The girls genuinely like me—I can feel it.
The knowledge of the other women liking me goes further than just an idea or even intuition. I’m certain of it, and it has something to do with the weird energy that’s been running through me since I had sex with Rhys.
